The topics addressed in the guide are early planning, stakeholders, interviews, focus groups, neighborhood meetings, outreach to government agencies, early achievements, roles and responsibilities, and the concept paper. Engaging the community should be the top priority in a project's early stages. People who live and work in the neighborhood should be involved in identifying issues, setting priorities, and designing solutions. A key aspect of engaging the community is the identification and involvement of stakeholders, i.e., groups and individuals who have a strong interest in the welfare of the community. As a means of gaining a comprehensive understanding of a community's problems, interviews with stakeholders and residents is basic. Suggestions are provided for the types of questions that should be included in an interview. Another strategy for gaining residents' input on community problems and solutions consists of the establishment of focus groups. These groups would consist of approximately 10 people who would meet for 1 or 2 hours to discuss their concerns about what is happening in the community and how it might be improved. Similar to focus groups are neighborhood meetings, in which the residents of a particular neighborhood within the broader community identify behaviors and practices that they believe undermine the neighborhood's quality of life. Possible solutions would also be offered. Planners should also reach out to government agencies, both those within the justice system and those whose work intersects with various areas of the community's life and welfare. Mounting an early achievement that seems to have priority among residents is important in order to show that change and improvement is possible through planning, cooperation, and commitment to goals.